Your next laptop is about to get a lot smarter — and a lot more expensive.
Microsoft just flipped the switch on its Copilot Plus PC era, and the company is betting big that Americans will ditch their old machines for computers that think.
Here's the pitch: Copilot Plus PCs pack dedicated AI chips called NPUs that handle tasks like live captions, instant photo editing, and a feature called Recall that snapshots everything you do so you can search it later.
Microsoft says these machines run AI tasks locally, meaning faster results and less of your data flying off to the cloud.
Early adopters report that some flagship features arrived months late, and a few promised tricks still haven't shown up at all.
That's a classic tech-industry move: sell the vision today, ship the reality whenever.
Qualcomm-powered machines launched first with marathon battery life, but some popular apps ran sluggishly or not at all.
Intel and AMD versions followed, promising better compatibility but shorter battery life.
Now you've got three chip families, wildly different performance, and a marketing label that sounds identical on every box.
Good luck sorting that out in the Best Buy aisle.
These laptops routinely start north of $1,000, and the AI features are the main justification for the premium.
If you mostly browse, email, and stream, you're paying extra for silicon that sits idle most of the day.
And let's talk about Recall, the feature that sparked the loudest backlash.
It takes constant screenshots of your activity, including passwords and private messages, and stores them locally.
Microsoft added encryption and made it opt-in after security researchers screamed.
It's better now — but "better" isn't the same as "worry-free." Should you buy one?
If you're replacing a five-year-old laptop anyway and want strong battery life plus future-proofing, a Copilot Plus machine is a reasonable pick — just check reviews for the specific model, not the sticker.
If your current laptop works fine, there's zero urgency.
The chips will get faster, the software will mature, and the prices will drop.
The AI PC wave is real, but right now it's more ripple than tsunami.
Manufacturers need you to believe your computer is obsolete.
Our take: Copilot Plus is a genuine glimpse of where laptops are headed, but the first generation is for enthusiasts and early adopters with cash to burn.
Final Thoughts
Everyone else should let the guinea pigs go first — and enjoy the price cuts that follow.